The better of two goods

Today's workout (elliptical): 27 minutes

I'm considering an upcoming 5K race this weekend that is taking place in an adjacent town. This event, the Brooke Jackman Race for Literacy, seems interesting and like most charity runs it benefits people in need. I chose not to run the RXR 10K earlier this month but I have no regrets that I didn't race. I ran my personal best for distance on that Sunday and felt that it was time better spent. This Sunday's race will be my only practical opportunity to compete in May. I'm already scratching on the June 6th XTERRA race because I have so little time that weekend and I'm heading out later that day on a business trip. I will definitely be running in the New Hyde Park 8K in mid-May so June is covered. My quandary for this weekend is whether I'm willing to give up a run on Saturday, when it's supposed to be beautiful, to rest enough to be competitive on Sunday. If I don't race on Sunday I would try to do a trail run at Stillwell or Muttontown on one day and explore the running experience at Eisenhower Park on the other day. Both of those runs are appealing but so is the thought of lining up for another race. I guess I'll have until early Sunday morning to decide. Either way I can't really lose.

Old Navy's performance shirts don't actually perform

Today's workout (treadmill): 2.4 miles at 9:17/mile

This morning's running experience had a few annoying moments but ultimately it turned out to be a decent workout. I woke up a few minutes early and quickly dressed for my run. I was hoping that the extra time would provide me an opportunity to cover some additional distance. Once I stepped into the garage I heard the rhythmic sound of rain and as the door began to rise I saw that it was pouring. I made my way upstairs, discarded my long sleeve shirt, headlamp and reflective vest and fired up the treadmill. Once I came up to speed I hit "Start" on the Garmin and hoped I could make up for the lost time. About 3 minutes into the run I looked at the Garmin to see what it was showing for pace so I could compare it to the treadmill's display. I saw that the Garmin hadn't actually started so I missed capturing the first third of a mile. So much for capturing my extra distance today.

Atayne Tech Shirts

Old Navy "Tech" Shirts

The run itself was fine but the jersey I wore did not do a good job of wicking sweat. It was one of the two "bargain" performance shirts that I'd bought on sale at Old Navy some months back. They were $5 each and I understand why. Although they are 100% polyester and look like technical shirts they don't seem able to absorb and evaporate sweat any better than cotton. It's tough to understand why one manufacturer charges $60 for a technical shirt while another charges $25 that looks and feels similar. In those cases both shirts do the job but perhaps the higher end shirt does it better. I will be posting a review of my Atayne technical shirt
(made from 100% recycled materials) on Runner's Tech Review that I will compare to a few others to see if I can uncover the differences.

Will Saucony's performance shoes make me faster?

Saucony's new Kinvera minimalist performance shoe
Men's (left), Woman's (right)

Today's run (street): 2.4 miles at 9:07/mile

Saucony Grid Tangent 4

I've always been interested in Saucony shoes but have never owned a pair. Saucony has always seemed like a quality brand and I know a few people who swear by them and won't run in anything else. I'm well equipped in terms of regular trainers with my Brooks Adrenaline 9's and 10's but I've often wondered what it would be like to run in a lightweight trainer or even a racing shoe. Could a few ounces really make a difference in terms of performance? Is the trade-off of weight worth the loss of cushioning? Would running in performance shoes, with their closer heel-to-forefoot height ratio, help me become more of a mid foot striker? The answer to these questions will come after I receive a couple of pairs of performance shoes to test. The Saucony folks are sending me pairs of the new Kinvera and Grid Tangent 4 this week and I'm really looking forward to putting them through their paces, so to speak.

It's almost the middle of May but morning temperatures continue to feel quite chilly. I headed out at 4:00 AM this morning and needed long sleeves to feel comfortable throughout my run. I didn't wear gloves and I regretted that but it was fine for a two mile workout. I felt strong, as I usually do after a rest day, and considered running three or four miles instead of the 2.25 to 2.5 miles I usually run in my short window of time. I knew that if I did that my morning schedule would be disrupted so I settled for 2.4 that I covered in just under 22 minutes. Despite feeling strong and running with good energy I only averaged 9:07 per mile. Good for early morning but slower than I'd felt I'd run. No matter, it was a really pleasant workout and with my performance shoes on their way I can worry about my pace another time.

Running in the movies

Marathon Man 1976

Today's workout: Rest day

Early on Sunday morning I was flipping through the channels trying to find something resembling news when I came across the movie "Marathon Man." Although I'd seen it before, the thing I'd remembered most about that movie was the famous scene with Dustin Hoffman in the dentist chair being asked "Is it safe?" As I watched it on Sunday I paid more attention to Hoffman's character as a runner. His training paid off for him near the end when he literally outruns his captors. My obsession with running metrics got the best of me while watching a scene near the beginning when Hoffman runs around the reservoir in Central Park while his girlfriend times him. I was thrilled to see that the reservoir hasn't really changed since 1976 and I'll think about the movie the next time I make that circuit. When Hoffman ran by his girlfriend she yelled "11:47, you're getting faster!" I grabbed my iPhone and, knowing one loop around equals 1.58 miles, calculated that he was running at a 7:27 pace. Not bad.

It was fun to watch a great movie that had running as part of its theme. Besides the obvious, Chariots of Fire, I haven't connected great films with running. Now, as a  runner, I notice things I've never noticed before. Thinking about it now, one of my favorite films from the '80's was The Big Chill where one of the lead characters owns a running store. I recall a scene where he gives his house guests new pairs of running shoes and most of them go out early on a Sunday morning for a group run. Perhaps I'll stumble upon that movie again as I navigate the channels on some early weekend morning.

Walking for a cause and running just because

The Emerging Runner family walks for a good cause

Yesterday's activities: 1.5 mile walk-a-thon plus  2.6 miles (street run) at 9:37/mile

Today's run (street): 4.4 miles at 9:10/mile

It's been an active weekend that started yesterday morning with the start of the Nassau County Red Cross Walk-a-Thon at Eisenhower Park. My wife works at the Red Cross as a volunteer so the Emerging Runner family spent from 8:00 - 11:00 AM helping to set up and manage participants who had come for the 1.5 mile walk. After Friday's 6+ mile run in Central Park I was feeling the residual effects of the hills but I thought the walk would be easy and fast. It turned out that 1.5 miles seemed a lot longer than I'd imagined but I enjoyed every step. It was a strange morning for weather, alternating between overcast skies, bright sun and a 15 minute downpour that had crowds of people running for cover under makeshift tents.

My wife, son and daughter and I set out on the walk at a good pace and I enjoyed seeing the park from a different perspective. There were lots of runners out in the morning and I wished that I had worn running clothes but this was really about walking and family time. We had a lot of fun and the turnout was excellent considering all the bad weather that had been expected. Later on that day I decided to do an easy run around the neighborhood. The sun had stayed out and it had grown a little warmer but the winds grew increasingly stronger throughout my 25 minutes of running, I didn't run fast but I wasn't concerned about pace. It was nice to get a run in on Saturday, however short.

This morning I headed out early because it's Mother's Day and I wanted to be as available as I could for the rest of the day. My kids set up breakfast for my wife downstairs while she did her daily workout upstairs. I slipped out and did a neighborhood run going in the opposite direction of my usual loop so that I could fold in the longish hill on Jericho Turnpike. I still felt some residual tiredness from Friday but I decided to maintain a faster clip than yesterday and completed 4.4 miles at 9:10 per mile. I was very pleased with the pace because my effort level was low while my enjoyment level was high. It was still early when I returned home. So far, we've had a full day with plenty of time left to celebrate Mother's Day.